Iconoculture, a company that tracks consumer trends for consumer giants like Sony, has dubbed kids under the age of 11 "Generation We." With an estimated buying power of 18 billion, entrepreneurs are turning their attention to this segment of the market. Never having known a world without the Internet, these children are consuming information in a very different way. These little opinionated tech savvy consumers are not responding to traditional media.
Opportunity awaits the proactive businessman. Being a pioneer marketer to this group could put you well ahead of the competition.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Monday, January 14, 2008
Virtual Phone System
We just changed our business phone system to a company called RingCentral. It is a virtual phone system for professionals and small businesses. We have a toll free 800 number that is used as our phone and fax. When someone calls, we set up a message that allows people to choose from seven different extensions depending on their question. On the backside of the system, you control how the call gets routed when someone presses a particular extension. If you want it to go straight to voicemail (like me), you can set it up that way. The voice mail is emailed to whatever email address you want in a WAV file. You can have each extension forwarded to a different phone # and each voice mail emailed to a different email address. Faxes arrive via email in a PDF. There are other functions that RingCentral offers, we are just in the beginning phases of learning to use this business tool to its fullest.
And guess what...all this for the low price of $29.99.
And guess what...all this for the low price of $29.99.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
"Close the File" Technique
If you are in sales, you have most likely had some kind of experience that correlates to the following scenario:
You're in a sales appointment. Your putting on your dog and pony show. The prospect is positive, and you think you've got the sale in the bag. You finish your presentation with a grin of accomplishment and low and behold the client says, "I'm going to think it over. I'll get back to you next week." And now the game begins.
You follow up with them, and they ask you to follow up with them in a month. This pattern repeats itself until finally, the "potential client" just doesn't call back. You spend more time thinking about how great that appointment went and continue to leave unreturned messages.
All the while, you're the busy guy who justifies how good of a salesman he is by the number of "Maybes" he is following up with.
Next time you get a "Let me think it over" just say, "I appreciate your time so far. It doesn't look like we are going to be a fit. I am going to go ahead and close the file. Thanks though!"
You have just saved yourself from a state of prolonged self delusion. The tire kickers have been unmasked, and the procrastinators have been put on the spot. You have taken back control. Make sure you are playing by your rules, not by theirs!
You're in a sales appointment. Your putting on your dog and pony show. The prospect is positive, and you think you've got the sale in the bag. You finish your presentation with a grin of accomplishment and low and behold the client says, "I'm going to think it over. I'll get back to you next week." And now the game begins.
You follow up with them, and they ask you to follow up with them in a month. This pattern repeats itself until finally, the "potential client" just doesn't call back. You spend more time thinking about how great that appointment went and continue to leave unreturned messages.
All the while, you're the busy guy who justifies how good of a salesman he is by the number of "Maybes" he is following up with.
Next time you get a "Let me think it over" just say, "I appreciate your time so far. It doesn't look like we are going to be a fit. I am going to go ahead and close the file. Thanks though!"
You have just saved yourself from a state of prolonged self delusion. The tire kickers have been unmasked, and the procrastinators have been put on the spot. You have taken back control. Make sure you are playing by your rules, not by theirs!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Drowning in Minutia
A couple months ago, it was brought to my attention that we may not be utilizing QuickBooks to its potential for our business. That was just the tip of the iceberg.
Since the inception of our business, I have built elaborate Excel spreadsheets to track our individual property expenses, tenant income records, and investor loan records. I also had come across a real estate investor course (specifically geared towards setting up QuickBooks for our specific business model) that I thoughtfully placed on a shelf to collect dust for a couple years.
Finally, after enough frustration with the way we were set up by our accountant, I hired someone to read the course. It was implemented so we could start the year on our new accounting system. QuickBooks is now set up so that it tracks everything for us that I used to input into Excel manually. Between myself and my assistant, this will save us from a monotonous 4 to 6 hours per week of inputting data. Not included in those #'s is the time spent just thinking about not wanting to do it.
In the age of the Internet, there are so many quality programs and systems that can save both time and money. It's realizing that other ways of getting things done are out there that is difficult to see sometime.
What do you spend time doing in your business right now that could be handled more efficiently through the utilization of software?
Since the inception of our business, I have built elaborate Excel spreadsheets to track our individual property expenses, tenant income records, and investor loan records. I also had come across a real estate investor course (specifically geared towards setting up QuickBooks for our specific business model) that I thoughtfully placed on a shelf to collect dust for a couple years.
Finally, after enough frustration with the way we were set up by our accountant, I hired someone to read the course. It was implemented so we could start the year on our new accounting system. QuickBooks is now set up so that it tracks everything for us that I used to input into Excel manually. Between myself and my assistant, this will save us from a monotonous 4 to 6 hours per week of inputting data. Not included in those #'s is the time spent just thinking about not wanting to do it.
In the age of the Internet, there are so many quality programs and systems that can save both time and money. It's realizing that other ways of getting things done are out there that is difficult to see sometime.
What do you spend time doing in your business right now that could be handled more efficiently through the utilization of software?
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Remote Desktop Access for the Remote Businessman – One Step Closer to Going Virtual
Within our company, there are four different computers that myself and associates use. I had a tech guy over to the office earlier today to help us with our setup. He mentioned that he could set a computer up so that no matter where I was in the world, as long as it was on, I could access my personal desktop from any computer just like I was sitting in front of it at home. So I said, “What are you waiting for?”
He started an account with http://www.LogMeIn.com/ (and by the way, it was a free account). Each of our company’s computers was added to the account, and we were ready to go. I was at an appointment later in the day at one of my friend’s houses and wanted to give it a test run. From my friend’s computer across town, I logged into the website and decided to pull up the computer that our office assistant uses. I did not expect for her to still be at the office, and when the screen came up, we could see that she was responding to an email in our account. Now, my reason for showing my friend and being excited about it was definitely not for spying reasons, but this was pretty amazing!
How could this be useful in business?
For me, being able to access information on any one of our computers from anywhere in the world is outstanding! We are in a big push to go virtual with everything we do in our business, and this is just one more step closer to the goal. I am not a tech person and get frustrated when my computer is having problems. Through this fine piece of technology, as long as any problem that I have is not a hardware problem, my tech guy can work on my computer from wherever the heck he wants to. I get easy access to all my personal files wherever and whenever and can give away that access as well. This whole concept of remote desktop access isn’t new at all…it’s new to me though, and I like it!
I heard about a similar company http://www.GoToMyPC.com/ that offers remote desktop access. I don’t know the advantages or disadvantages between the two. Other applications such as web conferencing and collaboration are available through GoToMyPC.
He started an account with http://www.LogMeIn.com/ (and by the way, it was a free account). Each of our company’s computers was added to the account, and we were ready to go. I was at an appointment later in the day at one of my friend’s houses and wanted to give it a test run. From my friend’s computer across town, I logged into the website and decided to pull up the computer that our office assistant uses. I did not expect for her to still be at the office, and when the screen came up, we could see that she was responding to an email in our account. Now, my reason for showing my friend and being excited about it was definitely not for spying reasons, but this was pretty amazing!
How could this be useful in business?
For me, being able to access information on any one of our computers from anywhere in the world is outstanding! We are in a big push to go virtual with everything we do in our business, and this is just one more step closer to the goal. I am not a tech person and get frustrated when my computer is having problems. Through this fine piece of technology, as long as any problem that I have is not a hardware problem, my tech guy can work on my computer from wherever the heck he wants to. I get easy access to all my personal files wherever and whenever and can give away that access as well. This whole concept of remote desktop access isn’t new at all…it’s new to me though, and I like it!
I heard about a similar company http://www.GoToMyPC.com/ that offers remote desktop access. I don’t know the advantages or disadvantages between the two. Other applications such as web conferencing and collaboration are available through GoToMyPC.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Five “Must Read” Classics
1. Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill – Over 20 years of research culminates into the philosophy of personal achievement. Don’t go another day without having read this book. It simply will cost you too much.
2. How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie – The how-to guide to communicating effectively with people.
3. As a Man Thinketh, by James Allen – Every sentence in this book is like a seminar, and you can read it in less than 30 minutes. You can even download it for free at www.gutenberg.org/etext/4507.
4. The Richest Man in Babylon, by George Samuel Clason – An easy fun read that dispenses sound financial advice.
5. The Greatest Salesman in the World, by Og Mandino – The classic guide to the philosophy of salesmanship.
2. How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie – The how-to guide to communicating effectively with people.
3. As a Man Thinketh, by James Allen – Every sentence in this book is like a seminar, and you can read it in less than 30 minutes. You can even download it for free at www.gutenberg.org/etext/4507.
4. The Richest Man in Babylon, by George Samuel Clason – An easy fun read that dispenses sound financial advice.
5. The Greatest Salesman in the World, by Og Mandino – The classic guide to the philosophy of salesmanship.
Saturday, December 1, 2007
The Secret to Creating a Raving Fan
Last week, my company bought another piece of property in Charleston, SC. My business partner, Dusty Keefe, had met with the homeowners to contract the property and built our company a fine reputation to live up to (a technique Dale Carnegie goes over in his classic, “How to Win Friends and Influence people”). One of the owners was questioning Dusty on how we do business and whether or not he could count on us to come through with our promises. Dusty told him, “I think you will find that we will do exactly what we say that we will do, and when you look back on this after we have purchased your property, you’ll be glad that you did business with us.” That was all that was needed to say to satisfy his concerns. We had made them a cash offer and a closing within two weeks.
Two weeks later, this past Wednesday, we closed on their property. Dusty attended the closing and in the middle of signing all the documents the homeowner came to a sudden stop and said, “Can I just say something before we move forward? I remember what you said to me when we first met about how your company does business and you guys not only did exactly what you said you’d do, but you always delivered a little extra. When you guys said you’d call me, you did. When you guys said you would be at my house, you were. When you said you would close by today, you did. I just want to say that that is a very rare trait in this day and age. My wife and I truly appreciate your help. Thank you.”
Wow! It is really that easy to create a raving fan. There are so many people that consistently over promise and under deliver. They commit themselves with a reckless disregard to their integrity. Any time you make a commitment to someone, take it seriously. Set yourself apart from the pack by simply doing what you say you’re going to do.
Two weeks later, this past Wednesday, we closed on their property. Dusty attended the closing and in the middle of signing all the documents the homeowner came to a sudden stop and said, “Can I just say something before we move forward? I remember what you said to me when we first met about how your company does business and you guys not only did exactly what you said you’d do, but you always delivered a little extra. When you guys said you’d call me, you did. When you guys said you would be at my house, you were. When you said you would close by today, you did. I just want to say that that is a very rare trait in this day and age. My wife and I truly appreciate your help. Thank you.”
Wow! It is really that easy to create a raving fan. There are so many people that consistently over promise and under deliver. They commit themselves with a reckless disregard to their integrity. Any time you make a commitment to someone, take it seriously. Set yourself apart from the pack by simply doing what you say you’re going to do.
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